By Gaya Gupta · The Washington Post (c) 2025
Tens of thousands of people are expected to attend Pope Francis’s funeral Saturday, including many world leaders, Catholic officials and mourners from around the world.
Here’s a look at who is expected to attend.
President Donald Trump
Trump, who had clashed with Pope Francis during his first and second terms, said Monday that he and first lady Melania Trump would be in attendance.
“We look forward to being there!” he wrote on his social media platform, Truth Social, on Monday, before the Vatican confirmed the date of the funeral.
Prime Minister Keir Starmer
A spokesperson for 10 Downing Street confirmed that the British leader was planning to be there.
President Emmanuel Macron
Speaking to reporters while traveling overseas, Macron said he would be in attendance, “as expected.”
President Volodymyr Zelensky
The Ukrainian president confirmed that he would be traveling to Vatican City with Ukraine’s first lady, Olena Zelenska, on Saturday for the funeral.
President Javier Milei
The president of Argentina, where Francis was born and grew up, said he would be in attendance Saturday. Though Milei had been harshly critical of Francis in the past, he mourned his death Monday, saying their differences now seemed “minor.”
The Prince of Wales
British media reported that Prince William would attend Francis’s funeral on behalf of his father, King Charles. The king and Queen Camilla met privately with Francis in Italy earlier this month.
King Felipe and Queen Letizia
The Spanish royals are set to attend, according to local media reports.
E.U. leaders
The president of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, and the European Council president, António Costa, are set to travel to Rome, their offices said.
Members of the Catholic Church
The 135 cardinal electors who will choose the next pope are set to attend Francis’s funeral Saturday. Cardinal Kevin Joseph Farrell, the Vatican camerlengo, will lead a prayer at the Chapel of Casa Santa Marta, before a funeral procession to St. Peter’s. The dean of the College of Cardinals, Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re of Italy, will preside over a public Mass on Saturday.
Other global leaders
Taiwan’s foreign ministry said it would send an envoy.
The Kremlin’s chief spokesperson, Dmitry Peskov, said that President Vladimir Putin would plan to attend, according to Russia’s Tass news agency. China’s foreign ministry said Tuesday that it had “no information” available about plans for a delegation.
Lily Kuo, Samantha Schmidt, Beatriz Rios and Serhiy Morgunov contributed to this report.